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EPHS Gifted and Talented Parent Resources

Ideas
for Success in the College Application Process

This list is intended to assist Eden Prairie High School students
with the college application process.
It is not a complete checklist, but it is intended to ensure that key
considerations are not overlooked as a student progresses through his/her high
school years. Moreover, students do not need to accomplish
everything listed below. Rather,
students should find a balance where they are challenged but not overwhelmed.

Colleges
look for depth in your activities. Attend the Activities Rush in October. Choose a few clubs that interest you.
Test-drive those activities in your freshman year. Take note of Academic Clubs, Fine Arts Clubs,
and Service Clubs... anything that sparks your interest.

Keep
track of all volunteer hours; use the Outreach Room. Service hours and giving
back are important ways to show you care about your community and the world.

Join
or continue your favorite sport(s). They
can be JV or Varsity. Intramurals are also strong at EPHS. Colleges look for a natural balance in your
life.

For
parents, attend the “What I Wish I Knew” PTO
evening session offered in the fall.

Join
EPCGT
to meet with other parents and students to learn and share ideas.

Sophomore
Year

If
you did not take Careers 9/10 in 9th grade, consider adding it to
your schedule for this year.

Double
up in language (Levels 3 & 4) if this is an area of interest to you. Once you have completed Level 4, any gaps in
your language studies will be less significant.

Consider
taking AP Courses this year so that you don’t have so many AP tests to take
Junior and Senior Years. Take these
exams as seriously as your entrance exams.
Scores go directly on your application and may count towards college
credit.

Double
up in science either this year or next in order to take advantage of all AP
Science offerings if that is an area of interest to you.

Online
classes, while not free, can help fill in schedules for music students.

Take
the PSAT test in October if you tend to score well on standardized tests.

You
will start receiving college mailings.
Begin collecting them in two separate bags, those to consider and those
to donate to the CRC. (The CRC
especially needs college catalogs.)

Touch
base with your Gifted and Talented Program Coordinator or counselor if you have
questions.

Continue
to visit the CRC to review the
scholarship binder and begin to learn more about on-site college admission
visits and all that the CRC
offers. Ask questions. (Also available via Naviance.)

Continue
to study diligently so that you are building skills and so that your GPA
reflects your best effort. Get help during
COREtime if needed.

Continue
with your chosen sports and activities.

Get
a summer job. Summer work teaches you
skills you can’t learn in school. Start
applying for summer work in December.

Schools
are looking for the whole package --- excellent test scores, passionate
learners, great leaders, superb recommendations, well-written essays, and work
or activities inside and outside of school.
Follow your passions. Passions
are not necessarily what you are best at, but rather what gets you fired up!

Junior
Year

The
summer before Junior Year is a great time to take the PSAT review class. You can also take a course at the beginning
of your junior year. If you only need to focus on English or Math, discuss this
with your course director. He/she may
tailor the course for you. Take your PSAT for National Merit eligibility again
in October.

You
may also want to consider taking a course specific to ACT testing.

If
you didn’t take Careers 9/10, consider taking Careers 11/12 this year.

Sign
up for AP Courses as appropriate to spread them out over this year and
next.

Check
the daily bulletin to see what colleges are visiting EPHS. Schedule appointments with those you are
interested in. Continue checking the
bulletin at least weekly throughout this year and next.

Sign
up to take the SAT or ACT. You will want to take this exam as close to
taking the PSAT as you can. Make sure
you have taken the courses covered (e.g., English 11 or Hnrs. English 11)
before taking the SAT or ACT.

You
will want to take your 2-3 Subject Tests in your junior year if possible. The highly rated colleges require these
exams. Purchase the Princeton Review
Subject Test books in the areas you are focusing on. Give yourself a few months to study. Subject tests are given on the SAT exam dates.
Register similarly. They are
shorter tests and you can take one or two in a single morning. If you are
taking courses your senior year that would better prepare you for these exams,
this would be the only reason to delay taking any of these exams until senior
year.

Download
the Common Application and begin completing it.

Ask
two teachers of your choosing if they will write recommendations for you. Let them know why you are choosing
them. Remember to thank them verbally if
they are willing to do this for you.
They are not paid to do this extra service for students. Provide information to them before summer
begins or just as school starts your senior year.

If
you want to improve your SAT
score, study the specific areas that you are weakest in. Consider taking the exam again in your junior
year or at the very beginning of your senior year. With your already high
scores, you typically won’t see much change.

Consider
taking the ACT with writing if you want to give a college more confirmation of
your abilities. If you take this test,
practice writing an essay in 25 minutes.
Time yourself so you realize what a challenge this is. Be prepared to write a response even if the
topic on the exam is not of interest to you.

Visit
colleges throughout your junior year while school is in progress. Ask for the Erie Newspaper in the CRC to receive names of alumni with whom you can
connect while visiting the school. With the “extra” something you participate
in besides academics, make sure you set up an appointment with a coach,
symphony instructor, etc. and get to know them while visiting campus.

Don’t
disregard your “gut” feel about the college.

Create
a resume independent of your common application. It should include the following sections:
Education, AP/College Level Course, Activities, Leadership Experience,
Community Service, Work Experience, Awards and Honors, and Travel Experience.
This resume will be used in several ways: 1) As a discussion piece to review
with the Gifted and Talented Coordinator or school counselor so they get to
know you better, 2) To provide to the two teachers you have selected as
references so they also get to know you better, and 3) To provide to college
interviewers if they want to use it during the interview process.

Review
everything you have written over the years for possible use as essay material
on your application. Make sure your
essay is a story and does more “show” then “tell”. Make sure your essay answers the question
asked.

Make
sure you have a strong finish to Junior Year. Your initial application will
only include your first 3 years of high school.
Make every class count.

Write
your common application essays the summer before senior year. Ask an English teacher to review for
grammar. Hire, or ask one to two people
who are known for their writing skills to read for content, but do not choose
people who will change the voice of your work.
Ask the CRC for
recommendations.

Senior Year

You
may be able to squeeze in a college visit just as summer is ending because some
of your college choices will have already begun classes. If not, use MEA
weekend for tours. Most of your college
visits should be completed by now. If
you wait to visit schools once you have been accepted to them, then plan to use
your senior year Spring Break for final tours.

In
the first week of school, e-mail the two teachers who are writing your recommendations
to thank them again for writing and to ask them for a time to drop off your
list of colleges, any paperwork the college needs completed, envelopes to mail
recommendations (if not completed on-line), and a copy of your resume. Update your resume to include everything
through your junior year. Write your
teachers a cover letter that reminds them what classes you had with them, what
activities you have done together, and what qualities lead you to choose the
schools on your list.

Meet
with your GT Program Coordinator or counselor to review your resume. Give them
a copy of your essays and resume. However, EPHS counselors use a template for
garnering information from students (College/Scholarship
Recommendation Request Form). The goal is to make sure your
counselor knows you and can write a reference that is genuine despite the fact
they serve a huge number of EPHS seniors.

Narrow
your college selections to 5-7 choices with one being “safe” and one or two
being “reach”. If money is an issue,
make sure you discuss how this affects your search. Try very hard not to apply to more than 7
schools. If you do, it will only take away
from the good efforts you are putting towards the schools you really want to
attend. More visits, more applications,
more interviews... it all adds up. Costs
add up too, about $100 per school for the application fee and any financial aid
filings.

If you
are being recruited for sports or anything else the school is seeking, make
sure you don’t spend time on the
phone with colleges once you have decided they are not on your list. You are wasting your time and theirs.

If
you need help with interviewing skills, contact Ms. Block in the CRC. She, or
a trained adult volunteer, will assist you.

Your
interview should be a discussion. Make
sure they see what “sparks” you. Also,
it is critical that you have studied the college you have applied to and why it
is of special interest to you. Do your
homework and ask questions. Go to the CRC for help on this.

Early
Decision is binding and is a great option if you know the college that is for
you. Make sure you can fully afford the
school; financial aid information is not available at the time of Early
Decision. Go to the CRC for help on this.

Early
Action is non-binding and is a way to apply early without commitment. If you are satisfied with Early Action
offers, you can make your college decision by December instead of waiting until
April/May. As with Early Decision,
financial aid information is not available for Early Action decisions. Go to the CRC
for help on this.

Make
sure you have fully investigated the academic scholarships available at your colleges
of choice. Most highly competitive
schools do not offer them, but many highly rated schools do. Put time and effort into those essays.

Make
sure your FAFSA is completed in October or November.

Apply
for financial aid no matter what. If you don’t qualify, it may still result in
a work study or other alternative monetary benefits offered by the college.

Remember
to write your counselor and teachers a thank you note for taking the time to
write those recommendations. They are an
important part of your application.

Don’t
pick a school because it sounds like the right thing to do. Pick the school that you truly believe is the
right fit for you and your family (e.g., fits your career goals and life goals). Avoid competing with your peers. This is your college choice.

There
are a lot of bright students out there.
Your something “extra” that you offer a school (ex: newspaper editor,
swimmer, violinist) is what might be a key to entrance. Schools need to keep their programs
running. Make sure these interests come
through in your essays and interview.

If
you don’t get into a school, do not take it personally. Just make sure the 5-7 colleges you choose,
whether a safe school or a reach school, are acceptable (winners) to you. Then, no matter what, your college search has
been a success!